Compressed Air Makes Sweet Treats for Spooky Nights

Happy Halloween, a day for ghosts, ghouls, witches, and — oh yeah — candy! Did you know that each state has a different favorite kind of candy? According to Time Magazine, Americans will spend $2.7 billion on candy this Halloween, and each state has its favorite. Hawaiians and Floridians love Skittles, while those from Oregon and Kansas favor Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.

But the favorite is candy corn, taking the top sweet spot for Idaho, New Mexico, Michigan, Alabama, South Carolina and Rhode Island. Though initially made by the Jelly Belly Candy Co., who still manufactures the treat today, Brach’s Confections, Inc. is often cited as a taste favorite.

Brach’s began in Chicago at the advent of the 20th century in a little shop at the corner of North Avenue and Towne Street. Run by Emil Brach and his family, Brach’s Palace of Sweets quickly became a success. Over a century later, the company produces and sells high-quality candy and fruit snacks across the globe and is the leading manufacturer of fresh loose candy in the United States.

Today, Brach’s combines their time-tested recipes with modern industrial engineering to create their confections, and compressed air plays an important role. The company’s operation in Winona, Minnesota produces nearly 30 million pounds of gummy candies and fruit snacks each year and relies on Atlas Copco air compressors to help get the job done.

The facility features five GA series compressors for base-load as well as trim and weekend use. Because the compressed air contacts food, cleanliness and reliability are vital. Air is cleaned through a pair of refrigerated air dryers and a series of high efficiency main line filters, and food grade lubricant is utilized to ensure that the candy you eat is safe (and delicious!).

So tonight as you sift through candy left behind by (or purposely hidden from) trick-or-treaters, consider the engineering that went into each piece and the importance of high-quality compressed air.